Sonic is back on the GBA, and this time it's for
some pinball and mini-game fun. There have been quite
a few pinball games released on the GBA so far, but
none quite as unique and featuring a variety of extra
games as this title offers. No matter if you're playing
the game to beat the challenges, or just playing it
as a fun game to waste some time away, Sonic Pinball
Party has something for everyone.

Screen Shots

GamePlay

Features and options is what Sonic Pinball Party
is all about. With 5 modes in total; Arcade, Story,
Party, Tiny Chao Garden & Casinopolis; you should
be able to find something to suit your needs. Story
mode features the Sonic Pinball table, one of 3 tables
available in this cartridge. You play as Sonic in a
pinball tournament organized by the evil Dr. Eggman,
he has kidnapped your friends and brainwashed them to
turn against you. Your task, to defeat your friends
(Knuckles, Tails and Amy) in the pinball tournament
and make it to the finals to face off against Dr. Eggman
himself. Each round has a different challenge, ranging
from score a certain amount of points to making a set
score within a time limit. Each round is quite challenging
and rewarding. With the cartridge save feature, if you
have troubles with getting past one of the rounds, you
are able to just try it again. As you beat each round
in story mode you unlock extra tables in the arcade
mode and more mini-games in Casinopolis.

In Arcade mode you have a choice between 3 very unique
tables; Sonic, Nights & Samba de Amigo (locked when
you start). In the cartridge there is also a menu option
"Tutorial" which describes for you each tables
unique features and objectives. What caught my eye the
most was on the Samba de Amgio table, you actually get
to play mini-games of Samba de Amigo (a music/rhythm
game) to score bonus points.

Party mode is where you find this games multiplayer
feature. 3 pinball based, but very unique, games that
play against or in cooperation with up to 3 of your
friends. These games include Hot Potato, Hockey and
a cooperative Ladder Climb game. Unfortunately I do
not have multiplayer capabilities, so I am not able
to comment on these games, but I wouldn't expect anything
less of what I've seen in the single player features
of the game.

Remember tamagotchi? In most of Sonic's recant releases
(including all of the GBA releases) they have included
a feature called Tiny Chao Garden. This is a virtual
pet extra tied in with the game. On the Sonic table
and in Casinopolis (which I will talk about next) you
collect and win rings. These rings you can spend on
your Chao (virtual pet), buying him/her food and gifts
or even another Chao for yours to play with. Also in
the Tiny Chao Garden is 2 mini-games for you to earn
more rings. In Sonic Pinball Party the 2 mini-games
are a bust-a-move clone and a game of memory. This is
one of my favorite features of the game because it just
brings everything all together and lets you enjoy some
simple entertainment from a cartridge already stuffed
full of fun.

Last option is Casinopolis. This features 3 pinball
and casino game clones including Roulette, Slots (locked
when you start) and Bingo (locked when you start). Each
game is a pinball game with a casino game inside it.
Each ball you play and lose costs you a ring, in Roulette
and Slots each bet that you make costs you a ring and
each time you play a new game of Bingo costs you 20
rings. But if you play the games right, you have the
chances to win lots of rings back so you can buy your
Tiny Chao more expensive food and gifts.

Control

As everyone knows in pinball control is key to keep
your game alive. Sonic Pinball Party defaults to the
controls of D-Pad Left and A Button as your flippers,
but thankfully if this is not your configuration of
choice the designers have included in their options
menu the ability to configure the controls to exactly
what you want. The physics of the ball react exactly
as you would expect them to and this game is a joy to
play. And the camera work is very well organized as
well, including during multi-ball sequences.

Graphics

Each table is unique and features highly detailed
and animated graphics. The Sonic and Nights tables actually
has multiple graphical skins for each of the different
worlds seen in the actual video games. Samba de Amigo
is the simpler of the table designs compared to the
rest, but the extra feature of being able to play an
actual mini-game version of Samba de Amigo makes up
for this. The detail that the Sonic Team has put in
to the graphics of this title surpasses all GBA pinball
titles on the market to this very day.

Sound & Music

This game is Sonic at heart, including the style
of music. Each table, mini-game and even the menus have
their very own unique music. The pinball and casino
sound effects and true in every way. Sonic Team has
done a great job with the variety and quality of music
and sound effects in Sonic Pinball Party.

Final Comments

This game is a pinball enthusiasts dream come true.
In Sonic Pinball Party the difficulty factor is just
right, so you won't get too frustrated. Also with so
many levels to play, extras to unlock and multiple different
unique types of games to play, the replay value is just
insane. This only leaves me with one question at hand,
when can I get one of these tables for my rec room?